Negotiators are discussing a phased arrangement to reopen the vital shipping route and lift the US blockade of Iran. The talks offer a possible way out of the conflict, but neither side has agreed to give up its strongest bargaining position.
Hormuz at the centre of negotiations
US and Iranian negotiators in New York are exploring a deal under which Tehran would restore passage through the Strait of Hormuz and Washington would lift its economic blockade. According to Reuters, the central difficulty is timing: each side wants to see a concrete concession before surrendering its own leverage. No agreement has been announced.
Iran sets out its terms
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said Tehran had sent a proposal to Washington through intermediaries. Under the Iranian plan, hostilities across the region would end within seven days, while the US would lift its blockade on Iranian ports, release frozen Iranian funds and waive oil sanctions. Iran would reopen Hormuz on the final day; talks on other disputes, including its nuclear programme, would follow. These are Iran’s proposed terms, not agreed steps.
Fighting tests the diplomatic opening
The negotiations are taking place during a pause in direct US–Iran fighting, but violence elsewhere continues. Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis have fired missiles towards Saudi Arabia, whose authorities reported intercepting six ballistic missiles on Thursday. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has said the Houthis are responsible for their own actions. The attacks underline how difficult a regional halt to hostilities could be to secure.
Oil markets watch for a breakthrough
Oil prices eased early on Friday as traders weighed the prospect of a truce, though attacks on energy infrastructure kept supply concerns alive. Hormuz remains crucial to global oil shipments, making any verified reopening significant well beyond the Middle East.
The immediate test is whether Washington and Tehran can agree on a sequence both trust: relief from the blockade for Iran and reliable passage through Hormuz for the US and other shipping nations. Until that sequence is settled, the diplomatic opening remains fragile.
Newshub Editorial in the Middle East – 25 September 2026
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